# AI workflow — the cheatsheet

The one-sentence version: chats are disposable; the files are the memory.

THE FILES
- CLAUDE-BASE — who I am. Portable; drops into every project.
- PROJECT-OPS — how we work on this project. Rules of engagement.
- BANK — how the project remembers itself. Read first, every session.
- NOTES — dated, append-only diary. BANK writes to it.

THE LOOP
1. Session opens — the AI reads the files. It now knows your world.
2. Declare your seat: [desk] / [laptop] / [phone] — so it knows its reach.
3. Work. Investigate before editing (Step-0). Verify on disk, not by echo.
4. Say "BANK" — memory sync + dated notes entry + close-out.
5. Retitle the chat by what it PRODUCED, not what you asked.

THE HABITS
- Two conversations, not one: chat plans, a second session executes.
- Dry-run before anything destructive.
- One canonical copy of everything; every other copy is a mirror.
- Wrong twice the same way = a rule. Write it into the file.
- When data "disappears," count rows first.

WHAT GOES WHERE
- A fact that's true everywhere → CLAUDE-BASE
- A rule for this project → PROJECT-OPS
- A decision made / state changed → BANK + NOTES
- A repeatable procedure → a skill, not another doc paragraph